Power Rankings and Predictions - Week 15 - Eastern Conference
Only 2 weeks left until the playoffs, and wow, things are both muddy and clear at the same time. Things got shaken up a little bit at the top, but not enough to affect postseason ranks too much…yet. Great Lakes loses to Manitoba, eliminating them from the playoffs. There are now 5 teams battling for 4 spots, and it seems that in just a few weeks, my labeling of the teams as either “haves” or “have-nots” might not have be appropriate. Anyway, Lets get to the rankings.
Last Week’s Predictions: 5-3
Total Record: 47-9 (2-4 in upset picks)
1. Flappin' Heads (13-1)
Previous: 1 High: 1 Low: 3
Next: @St. John’s Fog Devils
Notes: The Flappin’s keep their number 1 status, but lose ground no doubt. Still, they beat Triple B’s already this season, so I can’t move Triple B’s ahead of them unless they slip up again against St. John’s. They should be ok for a bounce back, beating the devils by 10.
2. Triple B's 13th Cadre (13-1)
Previous: 2 High: 2 Low: 6
Next: @Shqiperia Shqiperia
Notes: Cupcakes back to back, the B’s get another rest. Win by 35.
3. Eastside Eagles (11-3)
Previous: 4 High: 2 Low: 5
Next: vs Thunder Bay Hitmen
Notes: Eastside moves up to number 3 with an impressive win against the Flappin’s. A stale long-forgotten loss against the Chiefs very early in the season is all but forgotten about, allowing them to move up. This team is a new, adaptive team. They beat the Hitmen by 14.
4. Quebec City Chiefs (12-2)
Previous: 3 High: 1 Low: 4
Next: vs Quebec Eagles
Notes: The Chiefs fall to number 4 in the rankings, which is their lowest in quite a while. They battle the other Quebecers for supremacy. The names are similar, but the teams are quite different. The chiefs handle them easily with a 28 point win.
5. Regina Pounders (10-4)
Previous: 5 High: 4 Low: 6
Next: @St. Catherine’s Stompers
Notes: Should be 2 ho-hum games back to back for the pounders to end their season, now that Quebec is out of the way. They’ll beat the stompers by 42.
6. St. John's Fog Devils (9-5)
Previous: 6 High: 4 Low: 11
Next: vs Flappin Heads
Notes: The offense seems to be diversifying itself for this team. They’ll need to pull another rabbit out of the same hat that Eastside did. Unfortunately I think the upset of the Heads was a one time thing and St. John’s loses by 10.
7. Tim Tebow Sucks (8-6)
Previous: 7 High: 6 Low: 14
Next: @Manitoba Manitees
Notes: This game has huge playoff implications. All the tiebreakers here have my head spinning. Tebow doesn’t need this game as much as Manitoba does because Tebow beat Thunder bay. However, they do still need it, because they’re the only team realistically facing a loss in week 16 to a Western team(the UG). I still think Tebow takes this one in a win by 7.
8. Manitoba Manatees (8-6)
Previous: 9 High: 6 Low: 9
Next: vs Tim Tebow Sucks
Notes: Manitoba needs this game against TTS. The only team that they’ve beat out of the 3 others they’re competing with is St. John’s. However, with St. John’s being a game up, that might not come into play, especially if they lose this week. I think they will lose, by 7, making their playoff chances very difficult.
9. Thunder Bay Hitmen (8-6)
Previous: 10 High: 5 Low: 10
Next: @Eastside Eagles
Notes: Thunder Bay’s tough second half schedule comes into play here. They’ll face a good Eastside team and lose (by 14 is my prediction) but that doesn’t void all their playoff hopes, with their winning against Manitoba.
10. Great Lakes Rum Runners (6-8)
Previous: 8 High: 7 Low: 15
Next: @Mystery Alaskans
Notes: The loss hurts and eliminates them from the playoffs. However, this team still has pride and fan support to play for. The Alaskans are no pushovers, but I think the Rum runners are good enough to take care of them by a TD.
11. Mystery Alaskans (4-10)
Previous: 11 High: 10 Low: 13
Next: vs Great Lakes Rum Runners
Notes: No playoff implications, but they give Great Lakes a decent game. They’ll still lose though, by 7.
12. Port Dover Panthers (3-11)
Previous: 14 High: 7 Low: 14
Next: vs Alberta Avengers
Notes: Port Dover moves up 2 spots for me after giving a “beat down” to the Eagles. This game against Alberta shouldn’t be too much of a contest in my book. Port Dover wins by 14.
13. Alberta Avengers (3-11)
Previous: 12 High: 7 Low: 15
Next: @Port Dover Panthers
Notes: Alberta moves down a spot by putting up only 7 points against an average defense, and allowing 40+ themselves. They’ll lose to a better but aptly ranked Port Dover team by 14.
14. Quebec Eagles (3-11)
Previous: 13 High: 11 Low: 15
Next: @Quebec City Chiefs
Notes: You have to move down when you lose by more than 3 TD’s to a bad team. They’re playing QCC in a battle of the Quebecers. It won’t even be worth watching… loss by 28.
15. Shqiperia Shqiperia (1-13)
Previous: 15 High: 13 Low: 15
Next: vs Triple B’s 13th Cadre
Notes: All the games are tough when your bad. Loss by 35.
16. St. Catharines Stompers (0-14)
Previous: 16 High: 16 Low: 16
Next: vs Regina Pounders
Notes: These last few bad teams can’t even look forward to relegation. Well, I guess a better way to look at it is: “You can only go up”… right? Loss by 42.
Only 2 weeks left until the playoffs, and wow, things are both muddy and clear at the same time. Things got shaken up a little bit at the top, but not enough to affect postseason ranks too much…yet. Great Lakes loses to Manitoba, eliminating them from the playoffs. There are now 5 teams battling for 4 spots, and it seems that in just a few weeks, my labeling of the teams as either “haves” or “have-nots” might not have be appropriate. Anyway, Lets get to the rankings.
Last Week’s Predictions: 5-3
Total Record: 47-9 (2-4 in upset picks)
1. Flappin' Heads (13-1)
Previous: 1 High: 1 Low: 3
Next: @St. John’s Fog Devils
Notes: The Flappin’s keep their number 1 status, but lose ground no doubt. Still, they beat Triple B’s already this season, so I can’t move Triple B’s ahead of them unless they slip up again against St. John’s. They should be ok for a bounce back, beating the devils by 10.
2. Triple B's 13th Cadre (13-1)
Previous: 2 High: 2 Low: 6
Next: @Shqiperia Shqiperia
Notes: Cupcakes back to back, the B’s get another rest. Win by 35.
3. Eastside Eagles (11-3)
Previous: 4 High: 2 Low: 5
Next: vs Thunder Bay Hitmen
Notes: Eastside moves up to number 3 with an impressive win against the Flappin’s. A stale long-forgotten loss against the Chiefs very early in the season is all but forgotten about, allowing them to move up. This team is a new, adaptive team. They beat the Hitmen by 14.
4. Quebec City Chiefs (12-2)
Previous: 3 High: 1 Low: 4
Next: vs Quebec Eagles
Notes: The Chiefs fall to number 4 in the rankings, which is their lowest in quite a while. They battle the other Quebecers for supremacy. The names are similar, but the teams are quite different. The chiefs handle them easily with a 28 point win.
5. Regina Pounders (10-4)
Previous: 5 High: 4 Low: 6
Next: @St. Catherine’s Stompers
Notes: Should be 2 ho-hum games back to back for the pounders to end their season, now that Quebec is out of the way. They’ll beat the stompers by 42.
6. St. John's Fog Devils (9-5)
Previous: 6 High: 4 Low: 11
Next: vs Flappin Heads
Notes: The offense seems to be diversifying itself for this team. They’ll need to pull another rabbit out of the same hat that Eastside did. Unfortunately I think the upset of the Heads was a one time thing and St. John’s loses by 10.
7. Tim Tebow Sucks (8-6)
Previous: 7 High: 6 Low: 14
Next: @Manitoba Manitees
Notes: This game has huge playoff implications. All the tiebreakers here have my head spinning. Tebow doesn’t need this game as much as Manitoba does because Tebow beat Thunder bay. However, they do still need it, because they’re the only team realistically facing a loss in week 16 to a Western team(the UG). I still think Tebow takes this one in a win by 7.
8. Manitoba Manatees (8-6)
Previous: 9 High: 6 Low: 9
Next: vs Tim Tebow Sucks
Notes: Manitoba needs this game against TTS. The only team that they’ve beat out of the 3 others they’re competing with is St. John’s. However, with St. John’s being a game up, that might not come into play, especially if they lose this week. I think they will lose, by 7, making their playoff chances very difficult.
9. Thunder Bay Hitmen (8-6)
Previous: 10 High: 5 Low: 10
Next: @Eastside Eagles
Notes: Thunder Bay’s tough second half schedule comes into play here. They’ll face a good Eastside team and lose (by 14 is my prediction) but that doesn’t void all their playoff hopes, with their winning against Manitoba.
10. Great Lakes Rum Runners (6-8)
Previous: 8 High: 7 Low: 15
Next: @Mystery Alaskans
Notes: The loss hurts and eliminates them from the playoffs. However, this team still has pride and fan support to play for. The Alaskans are no pushovers, but I think the Rum runners are good enough to take care of them by a TD.
11. Mystery Alaskans (4-10)
Previous: 11 High: 10 Low: 13
Next: vs Great Lakes Rum Runners
Notes: No playoff implications, but they give Great Lakes a decent game. They’ll still lose though, by 7.
12. Port Dover Panthers (3-11)
Previous: 14 High: 7 Low: 14
Next: vs Alberta Avengers
Notes: Port Dover moves up 2 spots for me after giving a “beat down” to the Eagles. This game against Alberta shouldn’t be too much of a contest in my book. Port Dover wins by 14.
13. Alberta Avengers (3-11)
Previous: 12 High: 7 Low: 15
Next: @Port Dover Panthers
Notes: Alberta moves down a spot by putting up only 7 points against an average defense, and allowing 40+ themselves. They’ll lose to a better but aptly ranked Port Dover team by 14.
14. Quebec Eagles (3-11)
Previous: 13 High: 11 Low: 15
Next: @Quebec City Chiefs
Notes: You have to move down when you lose by more than 3 TD’s to a bad team. They’re playing QCC in a battle of the Quebecers. It won’t even be worth watching… loss by 28.
15. Shqiperia Shqiperia (1-13)
Previous: 15 High: 13 Low: 15
Next: vs Triple B’s 13th Cadre
Notes: All the games are tough when your bad. Loss by 35.
16. St. Catharines Stompers (0-14)
Previous: 16 High: 16 Low: 16
Next: vs Regina Pounders
Notes: These last few bad teams can’t even look forward to relegation. Well, I guess a better way to look at it is: “You can only go up”… right? Loss by 42.
Last edited Aug 29, 2008 22:47:55
I am offended that you said our win was pulling a rabbit out of a hat. I compare it more to finding a four leaf clover. 
